Method and System for Measuring the Occupation and Allocation of a Transmission Spectrum

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for measuring the occupancy of at least one transmission spectrum for a multicarrier radiofrequency signal communication system, wherein the method comprises slicing the spectrum into subsets of carriers and of time slicing within the subsets to form elementary time/frequency segments, signal non-transmission, by at least one transmission equipment item of the system, during elementary non-transmission segments mutually shifted over time and in frequency, and measuring chosen parameters of signals conveyed in the transmission spectrum during each of these elementary non-transmission segments.

1 . A method for measuring the occupancy of at least one transmission spectrum for a multicarrier radiofrequency signal communication system, wherein the method comprises:
 slicing the spectrum into subsets of carriers and of time slicing within the subsets to form elementary time/frequency segments;   signal non-transmission, by at least one transmission equipment item of the system, during elementary non-transmission segments mutually shifted over time and in frequency; and   measuring chosen parameters of signals conveyed in the transmission spectrum during each of these elementary non-transmission segments.   
   
   
       2 . The method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the system comprises a plurality of transmission equipment items each carrying out slicing the transmission spectrum, non-transmission during elementary non-transmission segments and measuring parameters. 
   
   
       3 . The method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said system comprises a plurality of groups of transmission equipment items, the slicing, non-transmission and measuring being carried out in a coordinated manner for the whole group. 
   
   
       4 . The method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said system comprises a plurality of groups of transmission equipment items and in that, a single slicing is carried out for at least one group, so that none of the equipment items of this group transmits during the elementary non-transmission segments. 
   
   
       5 . The method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein characteristics of frequency and/or of duration of the elementary segments are determined as a function of characteristics of the operating environment. 
   
   
       6 . The method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said elementary non-transmission segments are distributed in time over a determined period and in frequency over the whole of the transmission spectrum to form a non-transmission pattern. 
   
   
       7 . The method as claimed in  claim 6 , wherein said elementary non-transmission segments are distributed so as to form the non-transmission pattern as a function of characteristics of the operating environment. 
   
   
       8 . The method as claimed in  claim 6 , wherein the slicing as well as the non-transmission and measuring steps are repeated several times for one and the same transmission spectrum, so as to form several non-transmission patterns, the slicing comprising the inter-combining of the various patterns. 
   
   
       9 . The method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein at least two measuring on distinct elementary non-transmission segments are carried out simultaneously. 
   
   
       10 . The method as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein said non-transmission and measuring on an elementary segment are repeated without allocating any non-transmission segment in segments reserved for particular equipment items. 
   
   
       11 . A method for allocating the spectrum of a multicarrier signal of a communication system, wherein the method comprises the measurement of the occupancy of the spectrum according to the method of any one of  claims 1  to  10  as well as a allocating the spectrum between transmission equipment items of the system as a function of said measurements. 
   
   
       12 . A computer program medium for an equipment item of a multicarrier radiofrequency signal communication system, wherein the program comprises instructions which, when they are executed on a computer of this equipment item, control the implementation of the method according to at least any one of  claims 1  to  10 . 
   
   
       13 . An equipment item for a multicarrier radiofrequency signal communication system, wherein this equipment item comprises means for slicing at least one transmission spectrum into subsets of carriers and for time slicing within the subsets to form elementary time/frequency segments and means for signal non-transmission during elementary non-transmission segments mutually shifted over time and in frequency. 
   
   
       14 . An equipment item for a multicarrier radiofrequency signal communication system, wherein this equipment item comprises means for receiving a signal comprising elementary time/frequency non-transmission segments during which no signal is transmitted by at least one equipment item of the system and means for measuring chosen parameters of signals conveyed in the transmission spectrum during each of these elementary non-transmission segments. 
   
   
       15 . A multicarrier radiofrequency signal comprising elementary data segments corresponding to time periods determined over determined subsets of carriers, wherein it comprises elementary non-transmission segments mutually shifted over time and in frequency which do not comprise any data. 
   
   
       16 . The radiofrequency signal as claimed in  claim 15 , further comprising signalling information cues representative of the shifts between the non-transmission segments.